JJ Act Implementation: High Court Seeks DSLSA's Response On Operationalizing Scheme For Deployment Of Para Legal Volunteers In Police Stations

Dealing with a criminal reference concerning implementation of various provisions of Juvenile Justice Act, the Delhi High Court has recently sought response of the Delhi State Legal Services Authority (DSLSA) on operationalising NALSA Scheme for Para-Legal Volunteers which provides for the presence of paralegal volunteers (PLVs) in police stations, to apprise arrestees of their legal rights.

The Bench of Justice Siddharth Mridul and Justice Anup J Bhambhani was informed by amicus curiae H.S. Phoolka, DSLSA as well as the Delhi Government that the scheme must be initially rolled out restricting its functioning only to the matters relating to missing children and those involving minors.

The Court was also informed that the expansion of the role of PLVs may be considered at a subsequent stage.

"The above course of action commends itself for acceptance by the court. It is directed accordingly," the Court ordered while posting the matter for hearing on September 16.

While directing DSLSA to file status report on operationalisation of scheme, the Court also ordered that the report shall contain the aspect of attachment of PLVs to 50 police stations in the city.

The deployment of the PLVs was tentatively scheduled for August 1.

The scheme launched by NALSA states that the Para-Legal Volunteers have to act as intermediaries bridging the gap between the common people and the Legal Services Institutions to remove impediments in access to justice.

It further states that when such a PLV receives information about the arrest of a person in the locality, the volunteer shall visit the Police Station and ensure that the arrested person gets legal assistance through the nearest legal services institutions.

During the course of hearing on July 15, the Court was informed that a meeting was conducted between Special Secretary of DCPCR, two standing counsel (Criminal) of Delhi Government as well as DCP, Legal on July 13.

In the meeting, it was decided that a co-ordination meeting shall be organized in each district, at which the SHOs of the concerned police stations, representatives of the DLSA and the PLVs, would be introduced to each other. It was added that the names and phone numbers of the PLVs deputed at such Police Stations along with the names of the Nodal Persons of the DLSAs in each district, would also be made available.

Previously, while dealing with the matter, the Court had noted that there was an alarming number of about 800 juveniles or children in conflict with law who were detained in adult jails in Tihar in the past five years.

The Court had earlier issued slew of directions to the Juvenile Justice Boards as well as the Delhi Government for streamlining the functioning of the juvenile justice delivery system under the Act and Juvenile Justice Rules, 2016.

The Court had also issued directions for streamlining the process of inquiries relating to juveniles in conflict with law and scrupulous compliance by all authorities.

It had directed that all cases alleging petty offences against children or juveniles in conflict with law, where the inquiry has been pending and remains inconclusive for a period longer than one year, regardless of whether such child or juvenile has been produced before the Juvenile Justice Boards in Delhi, shall stand terminated with immediate effect.

The Court noted that the long pendency of cases was due to pandemic, where children were not produced before the JJ Boards. It was understood by the stakeholders that the time of 04 months stipulated in section 14 would begin to run only after the date of first production of the child before the JJB, hundreds of matters relating even to petty offences have been languishing at various stages for much longer than 04 months.

Case Title: COURT ON ITS OWN MOTION v. STATE

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